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46 GOLD AND BLACK ILLUSTRATED Though he's from Minnesota, Lankford-Johnson attended high school in Florida, running for about 1,900 yards as a senior at Palm Beach High School. He scored 23 total touchdowns. "Right now I'm just a speed guy," he said. "I know they have like five or six running backs on their ros- ter … but they didn't really have a speed guy. Coach Smith said they'd like to have somebody who can go outside and hit people with a 1-2 punch. "In high school, I was an every-down back. I know it's just high school, but I did run up the middle, took screens, blocked, all that stuff. But because of how different the game is now — the Big Ten is some real big boys and you have to hit the weight room — I'm probably not ready yet but hopefully I'll be right there when I get there." Smith called Lankford-Johnson a "home-run hit- ter." "He is a dynamic player, tremendous in the open field," Smith said. "Great feet, great balance. The thing that he's going to help us with, he's great with his hips and his vision is awesome. He is a guy who will make my job a whole lot easier, because we can hand the ball off to him and he can score from any- where on the field." Lankford-Johnson also held an offer from Lou- isville among others, but the Cardinals filled their class after he visited on the final weekend prior to the signing date. AUSTIN LARKIN A converted linebacker, Larkin hopes to provide the Boilermak- ers a needed shot of pass-rush- ing acumen as he transfers in from the City College of San Francisco. The Notre Dame legacy and former Fighting Irish walk-on transferred to junior college, where he moved from middle linebacker to D-end, where he recorded seven sacks and 17 tackles for loss as a sophomore at CCSF. Now, he'll return to major college football having already been part of prominent program. He spent two years at Notre Dame, as a linebacker. "It won't be any kind of giant shock when you run out in front of thousands of people," Larkin said. "I've never really been one for stage fright but that won't be much of a factor, because I've experienced it before." Larkin chose Purdue over Colorado State. For more on Larkin, see Pages 48-49. Brian Kaczor Purdue hopes Simeon Smiley's size can help it play more press coverage.